College Women Bound, Gagged in Classrooms--Man Arrested

A 30-year-old free-lance writer accused of luring attractive female college students at three Southern California campuses into empty classrooms where they were tied to chairs, gagged and blindfolded was being held in Los Angeles County Jail Wednesday on felony charges of false imprisonment and battery.

In what they described as one of the more bizarre cases in recent memory, authorities said Terry Davis Wood allegedly masqueraded as a student doing psychology research on stress to entice seven women into vacant classrooms at Pasadena City College, Cal State, Northridge, and Pierce College in Woodland Hills, where he closed the blinds and bound, gagged and blindfolded them.

Officer Ralph Evans of the Pasadena City College security department said Wood reportedly asked the women to pretend to struggle and told them he would open the blinds so they could be seen by passers-by. He reportedly told them he would go outside to see how long it would take someone to come to their rescue.

Stayed in Room

Instead, Wood remained in the room with the blinds closed for 20 to 30 minutes before releasing the women, Evans said.

The incidents occurred over the last six weeks and involved five students at PCC, one at Pierce College and another at Northridge, Evans said. The women ranged in age from 17 to 25, he said. None said she was physically harmed, Evans said.

Wood pleaded innocent to seven counts each of false imprisonment and battery at his arraignment Tuesday in Pasadena Municipal Court and was being held in lieu of $5,000 bail, Deputy Dist. Atty. Robert Court said.

He faces a preliminary hearing there on April 29, Court said. Neither Wood nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

Wood was charged with false imprisonment because, even though the women participated willingly, fraud and deceit allegedly were used to gain their cooperation, Court said. Under those circumstances, Court said, touching the women also constituted battery.

Arrested on Campus

Police arrested Wood on Friday on the Pasadena City College Campus after a woman had notified them of Wood’s activities, Evans said. Wood told various women he was a student at Northridge, UCLA or Pasadena City College, but he is not enrolled at any of the schools, the officer said.

Wood, who Evans said once wrote for the Daily News, listed no permanent address and was staying with friends in Pasadena at the time of his arrest.